Inside a small room where over 200 demonstrators stood in the Lewes Public Library on Sunday, a woman held up a handwritten sign baring, "Ignore your rights and they will go away."

It was the meditation of the Women's March, a political and social movement that technically began shortly after Donald Trump was elected the 45th President of the United States.

"The passion for justice, empathy and a more equal America that I saw in Washington a year ago is still present," said Meghan Wallace, co-founder of Mary Ann's List, an organization that helps elect qualified democratic, pro-choice women for office.

"We're still paying attention, we're still showing up, we're speaking out and we will be running for office."

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Meghan Wallace, Mary Ann's List, speaks to the attendees of the Women's March Anniversary Celebration held at the Lewes library on Sunday, Jan. 21, 2018.(Photo: Staff Photo by Megan Raymond)

After last year, when millions took to the streets around the world, supporters of the movement are now looking to local and state elections for women candidates who share their beliefs on immigration, the environment, worker's rights, safe drinking water, religious tolerance and domestic violence.

"The real power is at the polls," said Paulette Rappa, executive director of The Way Home, a nonprofit that helps formerly incarcerated citizens transition back into their communities. "The real march is on Election Day."

Addressing criticism of the Women's March's purpose, Rappa said it had "nothing to do with marching and it had nothing to do with pink hats. It was always about us saying 'Enough.'"

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Attendees of the Women's March Sussex listen to the speakers at the Lewes Library on Sunday, Jan. 21, 2018.(Photo: Staff Photo by Megan Raymond)

Rappa noted the glaring lack of representation of women in office. Lisa Blunt Rochester, she pointed out, was the only female representative to be elected in Delaware, and no women currently sit on the Sussex County Council.

U.S. Rep. Rochester, who was unable to attend the march in Lewes, said in a Facebook post, "Last year, we came together to build a movement powered by love, not hate. And in the wake of this Administration's government shutdown, it's important for us to never slow down and continue making our voices heard in the fight for equality and justice."

President Trump had a different take, tweeting on Saturday: "Beautiful weather all over our great country, a perfect day for all Women to March. Get out there now to celebrate the historic milestones and unprecedented economic success and wealth creation that has taken place over the last 12 months. Lowest female unemployment in 18 years!"

"The personal is political" was a tenant of the 1960s and 1970s feminist movement that Wallace learned when she was a student at the University of Delaware.

Wallace struggled with post-traumatic stress disorder after a man sexually assaulted her in high school, she told the crowd in Lewes on Sunday.

"When my grades started dropping, and I couldn't control my symptoms because my rapist was also on campus, I went to the university for help," Wallace said. "They counseled me into taking a medical leave of absence. He graduated, studies and life uninterrupted."

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Individuals line up outside of the Lewes Library as they attended the Women's March Anniversary being held by Women's March Sussex on Sunday, Jan. 21, 2018.(Photo: Staff Photo by Megan Raymond)

As she recovered, Wallace realized she wasn't alone, and years later worked as a legislative staffer in the General Assembly, where she helped draft and pass into law a requirement for Delaware colleges and universities to respond to victims of sexual violence.

"The future is female and together we will blaze toward a more equal Delaware," Wallace said.

As women voiced a call to action and a march to the polls, an older couple in the audience listened, a man standing behind a woman, his hands gently placed on her shoulders as she stood on her own.